Idling time for GPS to "connect"?

[photo2be]

Hi as new to Mini 2 and coming from Yuneec where it was extemely important to idle on the ground for 12-13 minutes for GPS update when you haven´t been in the air for a week or so. And do a compass calibration if moving 100-150 km east/west.
Is it the same for Mini 2?

 

[msinger]

Is it the same for Mini 2?

No. You can take off as soon as the home point has been marked.

See this guide for more details on when to calibrate the compass:
DJI Mavic Compass Calibration Guide

 

[photo2be]

No. You can take off as soon as the home point has been marked.

See this guide for more details on when to calibrate the compass:
DJI Mavic Compass Calibration Guide

Thanx! Great answer, great forum.

 

[Meta4]

Hi as new to Mini 2 and coming from Yuneec where it was extemely important to idle on the ground for 12-13 minutes for GPS update when you haven´t been in the air for a week or so. And do a compass calibration if moving 100-150 km east/west.
Is it the same for Mini 2?

Both of those would have been myths.
Moving any distance makes no difference to compass calibration and there's no need for GPS to "idle" for any time ever.

 

[hiflyer201]

Older aviation GPS's could take up to 45 minutes if you moved any distance ..like 500 miles...unless you put in the coordinates. Still I thought it was lightning fast compared to INS

 

[Lets Fly]

Both of those would have been myths.
Moving any distance makes no difference to compass calibration and there's no need for GPS to "idle" for any time ever.

Manual states if you move more than 50 miles you should do a compass calibration. Magnetic North is not true North and can make a difference.
Make that 50km, 31 miles, or 30 days not flying.

 

[SkyeHigh]

Manual states if you move more than 50 miles you should do a compass calibration. Magnetic North is not true North and can make a difference.
Make that 50km, 31 miles, or 30 days not flying.

Compass calibration is used to cancel out any magnetism picked-up by the aircraft. By rotating the aircraft as instructed it allows the compass to detect magnetic differences that are not part of the earth’s magnetic fields.

 

[Lets Fly]

Compass calibration is used to cancel out any magnetism picked-up by the aircraft. By rotating the aircraft as instructed it allows the compass to detect magnetic differences that are not part of the earth’s magnetic fields.

That may be true also, but that wouldn't explain why if you go more than 31 miles, calibrate. If that was the only reason, moving 50 feet could make a difference.

 

[SkyeHigh]

That may be true also, but that wouldn't explain why if you go more than 31 miles, calibrate. If that was the only reason, moving 50 feet could make a difference.

I suspect it’s more DJI playing safe. The app knows via the aircraft’s GPS when it has moved a specified distance.

My M2P was wanting to calibrate EVERY time I was about to fly regardless of whether I was back at the same location just a couple of miles away or 50-miles away. No change to the aircraft and never near a source of magnetism. Then out of the blue the calibration messages stopped - immediately after the last firmware update.

 

[DanMan32]

My Mini seems to request calibration more often than it should and I don't believe it's due to interference.

The Mini 1 seems to take a while, like a minute before it registers enough GPS satellites but only on the first flight of the day. My M2 seems to also delay allowing take off, but claims IMU sensors not ready.
The P3 would say it was "warming up".

 

[Meta4]

That may be true also, but that wouldn't explain why if you go more than 31 miles, calibrate. If that was the only reason, moving 50 feet could make a difference.

It doesn't explain it because it's not a thing at all.
There is absolutely no reason for you to recalibrate a perfectly working compass if you move 31 miles or 3100 miles.
Compass calibration has nothing at all to do with where you are on the earth.
DJI's terrible documentation in the manuals is to blame for the prevalence of myths and misunderstanding around compass calibration.

 

[old man mavic]

a compass calibration is normally asked for if there is metal close to the drone that is affecting the compass ,such as rebar in concrete
often all that is needed to get the message to go is to move the drone from the source of the metal ,if you just tried to calibrate in the same place then the anomaly would still be present even a watch can cause a compass error ,IMU errors are more to do with the giros not working correctly
this can happen after a hard landing or crash ,and even if the drone has not been used for a long time

 

[Meta4]

a compass calibration is normally asked for if there is metal close to the drone that is affecting the compass ,such as rebar in concrete

That's just another example of DJI's poor wording in their error message.
A compass calibration really isn't asked for if you place the drone on or close to steel objects.
The warning mine shows says:Move aircraft or calibrate compass.
>99% of the time the correct action would be to move the drone away from the thing that the compass is warning you about.

 

[old man mavic]

That's just another example of DJI's poor wording in their error message.
A compass calibration really isn't asked for if you place the drone on or close to steel objects.
The warning mine shows says:Move aircraft or calibrate compass.
>99% of the time the correct action would be to move the drone away from the thing that the compass is warning you about.

well all i can say is my MPP must be different from what you are flying ,i have a old coal bunker in my garden which is made of concrete with rebar in it if i place my MPP on top of it then after the drone has linked to the RC i will get a compass interference calibrate compass message on the screen,and as i said in my post, if i then move it off the bunker and place it on the ground,then the message after i have deleted it stays off ,i agree with you that there is no need to calibrate the compass

 

[EyesWideShut]

well all i can say is my MPP must be different from what you are flying ,i have a old coal bunker in my garden which is made of concrete with rebar in it if i place my MPP on top of it then after the drone has linked to the RC i will get a compass interference calibrate compass message on the screen,and as i said in my post, if i then move it off the bunker and place it on the ground,then the message after i have deleted it stays off ,i agree with you that there is no need to calibrate the compass

@omm, can you take off while on the bunker with the error and cancel the error message and be good to go?

 

[Lets Fly]

I suspect it’s more DJI playing safe. The app knows via the aircraft’s GPS when it has moved a specified distance.

My M2P was wanting to calibrate EVERY time I was about to fly regardless of whether I was back at the same location just a couple of miles away or 50-miles away. No change to the aircraft and never near a source of magnetism. Then out of the blue the calibration messages stopped - immediately after the last firmware update.

My Mavic Air asked me to calibrate almost every time I went to fly, my M2Z does not.
I have not flown outside of 10 miles, and I stay away from metal. If I get to go more than 30 miles I'll see if it asks.

 

[Lets Fly]

If compass calibration isn't needed after the first, why would DJI go through the expense of putting in the extra info in manuals and aircraft?

 

[Meta4]

If compass calibration isn't needed after the first, why would DJI go through the expense of putting in the extra info in manuals and aircraft?

There's no point asking why would DJI put something in the manual.
DJI's manuals are full of misinformation and contradictions on the subject of compass calibration.

It's a good idea to learn what compass calibration actually does so you can understand when it might be required.
The first post in this thread gives a good factual summary to help cut through the fog of misinformation surrounding this topic.

A short explanation of compass function, calibration and errors.

BACKGROUND The aircraft compass is often misunderstood, both in terms of function and purpose, but it is important to understand what the compass measures, why, and what happens to that information. At the most basic level the purpose of the compass is to measure the earth’s magnetic field in...

mavicpilots.com

 

[old man mavic]

@omm, can you take off while on the bunker with the error and cancel the error message and be good to go?

well for a start i would not take off with the message showing,thats asking for trouble i know that theres Rebar in the bunker and was just using it as an example, never get air born with error messages displayed